A 65-year-old woman who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute fentanyl and meth and other charges has been sentenced to more than eight years in prison.

After serving the 100 months, Betty Nora Anderson of Phoenix will be under supervised release for five years, according to a release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Arizona district.

Anderson also pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and falsification of records in a bankruptcy proceeding.

In September 2022, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers arrested Anderson as she attempted to smuggle 4.54 kilograms of fentanyl and 13.42 kilograms of methamphetamine into the United States from Mexico in her vehicle. After her arrest, Anderson was permitted to live in the community pending the disposition of her case; “however, she absconded twice from court supervision, ultimately leading to her pre-trial incarceration,” the release stated.

In March 2023, while a fugitive from justice in the case, she filed a petition for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Arizona. Anderson’s petition contained false and misleading statements, which resulted in the discharge of debts that Anderson owed to her creditors, authorities said.

As part of her sentence, Anderson was ordered to make restitution to the creditors in the amount of $52,358.00, the approximate total of her debt.  

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